15 Things I’d Tell My Daughter About Living A Full Life

My mother always gives the best advice. She has a simple, secret recipe for a happy life, a three-step plan to happiness:

1. When your expectations are not being met, don't despair. Instead tell yourself, "It's this or something better."

2. Every person should own a convertible at least once.

3. Every woman who has a child should have a daughter.

Humor aside, my mother's wisdom throughout life has been an integral part of my happiness. My relationship with my mother is one of my most cherished bonds. Perhaps inspired by step 3 of my mother's "recipe," I'd argue that mother-daughter relationships are one of the most unique and special dynamics in existence.

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Of course, there is great reason for the commonly held notion that mothers know best. But children are teachers, too. They are fearless with curious hearts and open minds. They have full trust and faith in those around them, and they know they will be taken care of.

We somehow lose both this basic trust, and our keen sense of wonder, as we age. As adults, we replace trust with worry and often trade in our wonder for jadedness. Returning to our childlike sensibility may help us along the journey to greater happiness.

Although I don't have children of my own, I am an aunt and a daughter, and I know what it is like to grow up as a little girl and become a woman. No one prepares you for certain situations. We all learn the way on the way.

But today, my mother instincts kicked in as I went to the hospital to meet my best friend's newborn baby girl. As an aunty, I want to protect and care for this beautiful new girl. As we welcome in a new little one to our extended "family," I can't help but reflect on lessons learned on my own journey to adulthood.

If I had a daughter, I would share my 15-step "recipe" for a happy life with her. Since I don't, I am dedicating this message to my best friend's new baby girl. Welcome to the world ...

There's no need to prove others wrong for seeing things a different way. There is clarity in contrast.

14. Watch your "whens."

You know, "When I get a new job, I'll start a family," "When I lose weight, I'll start dating," "When I have more money, I'll go on that trip." Life is only happening now. Don't let it get away.

15. When it feels like "the end," know that it's not. Plain and simple.

Rejections, breakups, and other difficult experiences may feel insurmountable at the time they happen. But nothing is absolute. You're often facing a new beginning. Open your heart and let these new experiences in.